In third week of August, I took a break to relax from my hectic schedule and headed for Delhi where my uncle and sister reside. My vacation was quite comfortable and I kept myself confined to home except for a visit to ‘Dilli Haat’ which is a traditional Marwari ‘teej mela’. I don’t want to bug my readers with the happenings of my personal life but I am here to share my takes from the book – Kargil: From surprise to victory by Gen V P Malik which I read during this vacation. There could not have been a more apt time than 15th August and location New Delhi, where the army headquarters is located to read this book. I started the book on 14th night and at the stroke of midnight hour, I was sailing smoothly to Kargil victory as India was about to enter its 61st birthday. I was so eager to snatch the victory as the war progressed and so engrossed in the book that my sister (but obvious as she was not getting my attention) kept threatening me of throwing away the book throughout the day but the fire which was burning in me could not stop me before turning to the last page.

The book has everything in it about Kargil war fought in 1999. It has all the micro details of the war like what went wrong which made us so vulnerable to the infiltration? What was the strategy of India to win the war? What was Pakistan’s response to attack? How Pakistan kept on denying of infiltration by its army which was later proved? How media and citizens of our nation supported the war? What was the mood of the soldiers and their daunting attack without caring for their family? What was the reaction of US and China as the two biggest rivals in Asia went on war?

As there were peace talks going on between India and Pakistan (as usual initiated by us), Pakistan was busy infiltrating its troops into Indian Territory. They penetrated our borders with all the arms and ammunition, while the Indian army and more importantly our intelligence agencies didn’t had slightest of clue. This clearly shows the failure of RAW and other Intelligence agencies of India which kept on giving ‘no infiltration certificate’ and denied any infiltration till May by which the Pakistanis had safely acquired many of our points. Even RAW (Research and Analysis Wing) was aware of infiltration later during the month of May but it was reluctant to talk about it in open due to deficiencies of not being able to smell it in February when it actually began. Surprisingly, when India conveyed this message to Pakistan, they refuted our claims and insisted that the infiltration was not done by Pakistani army but by Jihadis – a term given to terrorists.

Though we discovered during the latter stages of war that the infiltration was done by Pakistani Army under the façade of Jihadis but we could not go on a full time war with Pakistan due to lack of evidence. Once we gathered enough evidence like Identity cards and other personal belongings which clearly depicted involvement of Pakistan Army, they were in no mood to continue and wanted the war to end mid way. At this point, Indian prime minister played an important role and on the first instance refused all the request of our counter part to stop the war which I feel was quite fair. As we were trying to resolve issues and busy signing peace declaration (Lahore Declaration in Feb ’99), Pakistani prime minister, Nawaz Sarif cheated on us by not giving any signs of infiltration and later on when their army was crushed in the battle field and all their misdeeds were made public, they wanted us to stop the war mid day which is furious. General Malik has duly acknowledged the support given by Indian Prime minister to the armed forces. Having lost so many soldiers and also having experienced the disloyalty of Pakistan in the past, we could not rely on their commitment of withdrawing its troop from our ground. VP states in his book that even after committing and agreeing that they will not leave any troops or mines behind as they leave our ground; Pakistan came really cheap on their commitment and left behind booby mines and traps. Something which really makes me proud is the attitude of Indian army and at the same time I feel sad for Pakistani soldiers’ who fought for the nation and sacrificed their life but even then their country refused to acknowledge the dead bodies of their soldiers which were later buried on our ground with full respect and integrity. As the Pakistani families whose kith and kin died in the war could not see the faces of their relatives, there was a huge uproar in Pakistan and some retired Generals, Chiefs and Journalist came down heavily on Pakistan Government for its cheap attitude. The author has included the details of conversation (Indian Army possess the tapes in which it is recorded) between Ayub Khan and Pervez Musharraf, then Army chief, in the book which clearly shows full fledged involvement of Pakistan Army under the so called name ‘infiltration by Jihadis’.

Sensing the International pressure to avoid escalation of war which could have led to usage of nuclear weapons and irrecoverable disaster, India never crossed Line of Control despite the fact that the casualties would have been much less if we were allowed to cross LOC. As all the facts were disclosed to entire world that Pakistan was playing a double game, even International community supported India for using a complete restraint policy of not crossing the LOC and not using any nuclear weapons in the war. This helped in building a better image of India in International arena which was a bit tarnished due to nuclear tests carried out by India in 1998.

In the latter part of the book, the author has also laid down his views on improving the strength of Armed forces which he feels, is neglected. He has rightly condemned the bureaucracy at the top level where Armed forces is kept away from decision making process in which they should be involved. I personally feel that the government should give due heed to the Chiefs of three forces that is Air, Naval and Armed Forces before making any decision which is political but is indirectly related to army. The sanctity of Indian Army of being apolitical is praised world over but at the same time there was some tweaking with this neutral stance of the army and the political parties listed down Kargil War in their election manifestos which was just months away after the ending of war. I completely agree with the views of General that Indian Army should never be made breeding ground of politics as they don’t fight for any party but they fight for our nation. Secondly, there is a suggestion by the author that armed forces work in India in closed room and the population of the country is never aware of the failures or achievements of our system. This is unlike other nation like US, where citizens of the country have every insights of their army. So there is a need of more transparency and everyone in the country should be aware of the developments and controversies looming over armed forces which will further help them from being contaminated.

I feel really sad to write that after the war is fought, we maintain a low profile and forget our lost soldiers and even pull our self from celebrating the anniversary. When it is time to join other nations on the anniversary celebration of World War II victory, we are keen to do so. This betrayal is unwarranted and the armed forces should be given due respect. WE OWE EVERY BIT OF OUR LIFE AND BREATH TO THE SOLDIERS WHO ARE GUARDING THE LINE OF CONTROL. They who are guarding LOC and sacrificing all their worldly affairs for us have just one thing to say – “When you go home, tell them of us and say, for their tomorrow, we gave our today”. The cover of the book is breathtaking as it shows all the might, courage, sacrifice and love for the nation of an Indian lady – Captain Rajshree Visht wearing a black sari and soldier’s attire is saluting and bidding last adieu to her husband, Major Vivek Gupta MMC who will never come home again.

Time may run short, pages may run out of length, my voice may sore and words may fail but the daring tales of Armed forces will never end. This article is a tribute to all the soldiers who fought in Kargil war, especially who sacrificed their life and their deeds went unnoticed to ensure that we can breathe safely. This book has left an indelible mark on me which will be buried deep with me in my burial.

Aside from the book review
If you worship bollywood star, think again as there are many other who deserve much more than this. My hero is Lieutenant Vijyant Thapar of whom you might have heard in all probability and if not, do log on to the under mentioned website:

www.captainvijyantthapar.com
www.bharat-rakshak.com

Read this and it may send shivers down your spine:
Sometime before the final assault Capt. Vijyant Thapar (Robin) left this letter from the attack area, to be handed over to his family in case he failed to return.
His Last Letter to his parents

Dearest Papa Mama Birdie and Grany

1.By the time you get this letter, I’ll be observing you all from the sky enjoying the hospitality of Apsaras.
2.I have no regrets, infact even if I become a human again I’ll join the army and fight for my nation.
3.If you can, please come and see where the Indian army fought for your tomorrow.
4.As far as the unit is concerned the new chaps should be told about the sacrifice. I hope my photo will be kept in the …. mandir with karni mata.
5.Whatever organ can be taken should be done.
6.Contribute some money to orphanage and keep on giving 50 /- Rs to Ruksana per month and meet Yogi Baba.
7.Best of luck to Birdie, never forget this sacrifice of these men. Papa you should feel proud. Mama so should you…..Mama ji forgive me for everything wrong I did.
Ok then it’s time for me to join my clan ………
Best of luck to you all. Live life king size.

I was so moved after reading this book that I personally wrote a letter to Vijyants’ father. I urge all of you to contribute to our armed forces in whatever small way you can.

Proud to be an Indian!

(The book review is by a citizen of India.)

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